1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of information storage devices, and more particularly to mounting systems and housings for disk drives.
2. Background of the Art
Disk drives are used to retrieve and/or store data for computer systems and other consumer electronics products. Examples of disk drives include magnetic hard disk drives, optical disk drives, magneto-optical disk drives, and removable-media disk drives. Many disk drives include internal components that are sensitive to environmental contamination, and mechanical shocks and vibrations from outside the disk drive. For example, the surfaces of magnetic hard disks on which information is stored may be damaged by collisions with other internal components (e.g. read/write heads and/or supporting arms and/or loading ramps). Such internal components are typically enclosed within a disk drive housing. For example, FIG. 1 depicts a disk drive 100 with a disk drive housing that includes a disk drive base 110 and a cover 120. The disk drive housing encloses a spindle 130, which is attached to and rotates at least one magnetic hard disk. The magnetic hard disk is not shown in FIG. 1 because it is internal to the disk drive housing. The characteristics of the disk drive housing (and the mounts that hold it) may help reduce the adverse effects of mechanical shocks and vibrations from outside the disk drive.
For example, so-called “internal” disk drives are mounted within a host computer system or consumer electronics device for which the disk drive stores data. Mechanical shocks or vibrations may be transmitted to the disk drive via its mounts from such a host computer system or consumer electronics device. So-called “external disk drives” are not mounted within the system for which they retrieve and/or store data, but rather are mounted within a separate external enclosure. In that case also, mechanical shocks or environmental vibrations may be transmitted to the disk drive housing via its mounts. Thus there is a need in the art for a disk drive housing and/or mounting system that helps reduce the effect of mechanical shocks and vibrations from outside the disk drive.
Alternatively or additionally, the transmission of vibration in the opposite direction may be of design concern. Specifically, vibration and acoustic disturbances caused by the operation of the disk drive itself may be undesirable if transmitted to a corresponding host computer system and/or consumer electronics device. For this reason too, vibration and acoustic transmission via disk drive housing mounts is an important consideration in the design of disk drive housings (base and cover) and corresponding mounting and fastening systems. Accordingly, there is also a need in the art for a disk drive housing and/or mounting system that can help reduce the effect of vibration and acoustic disturbances from within the disk drive.
The designer of the housing and/or mounts for a disk drive faces a challenge that is compounded by several requirements and constraints. For example, the mounting systems and housings for modern disk drives must meet very tight cost requirements, and typically must also meet dimensional limitations imposed by industry-standard “form factor” requirements. Such cost and dimensional constraints create a design tendency towards simple and relatively stiff mounting solutions that may unintentionally exacerbate the transmission of mechanical shocks, vibration, and acoustic disturbances. For example, the disk drive 100 (shown in FIG. 1) is adapted to be stiffly mounted to a host computer system by threaded fasteners that extend from the host computer system and screw into threaded holes 102 and/or 104 in the disk drive base 110.
Furthermore, disk drives typically include a printed circuit board (PCB)—not shown in FIG. 1—that is electrically connected to the host system's “mother board” (or another PCB of the host system or consumer electronics device). However, such electrical connection typically also entails an additional mechanical connection that can provide an additional path for transmission of mechanical shock, vibration, and acoustic disturbances. This, in turn, may unacceptably reduce the effectiveness of conventional mechanical shock, vibration, and/or acoustic isolation methods and/or components.
Accordingly, there is an ongoing need in the art for improved housings and mounting systems for disk drives.